New superintendent hired for Oregon State Hospital

SALEM -- The Oregon State Hospital will have a new executive in charge starting Sept. 20.

Greg Roberts will replace Superintendent Roy Orr, who resigned last April on the same day the state released a critical report examining the death of a hospital patient.

Roberts, 59, worked as assistant director at the New Jersey Division of Mental Health Services, where he oversaw four adult psychiatric hospitals. He also served as chief executive officer at five state hospitals in New Jersey.

"There were three very qualified candidates, but the thing about Greg Roberts was the breadth of his experience," said Bob Joondeph, executive director for Disability Rights Oregon. "He was superintendent of one of their hospitals that was slated to be closed. It had very serious problems. He was able to turn that around."

Roberts, whose annual salary will be $236,640, says he welcomes the opportunity to move to the Northwest and to take on a new challenge.

"The problems at Oregon State Hospital are nearly exactly the problems that we'd seen and, to a great extent, resolved in New Jersey. You never do it alone," he said. "It takes a team effort."